There’s growing chatter around Mandera’s prolonged border closure, with local leaders pushing to lift this directive. They believe reopening the border could spark business opportunities and bolster revenue collection.
The border, shut down over a decade ago, hasn’t entirely halted illegal trade, claim both leaders and residents. This persistent underground activity continues to impact lawful businesses and has wider economic consequences.
The government initially sealed the border to throttle Al Shabaab terror threats and clamp down on smuggled goods sneaking through the porous frontier.
Mandera’s Governor, Mohamed Adan Khalif, noted ongoing deliberations about reopening the border. He acknowledged that while closing the 500-plus km stretch has mitigated security threats, reopening it under stringent surveillance could be beneficial.
“Our proposal is to reopen the border while defending our nation. This discussion must involve leaders and security personnel,” Khalif emphasized.
Khalif highlighted how legal trade suffers while neighbors Somalia and Ethiopia continue commerce unabated.
With Somalia now part of the East Africa Community (EAC), Khalif stressed the importance of reopening the border. “For Somalia to truly integrate into the EAC, we need uninhibited movement of goods and people,” he reiterated.
Previous border reopening efforts have stalled due to sporadic security flare-ups in the area.
Mandera’s Trade Executive, Adan Hamud, stated that the closure hampers trading activities between Kenya and Somalia.
Other local leaders expressed concern that the closure is deterring foreign investors and development partners, who might turn to neighboring counties.
“Technically, the border is shut, but unofficial trade persists. About 500 km of the border allows for continued movement. An official reopening by the Kenyan government will unlock vast opportunities for Mandera town,” Hamud outlined.
The county executive assured that current security conditions are unlikely to deter investors. “We’ve seen fewer attacks recently. Previous years saw more incidents, but the last five years have been relatively stable. Many current businesses are run by non-residents; the county’s unsafe image is what scares people off,” he explained.
Hamud mentioned that a multi-sectoral team recently met to assess the ground situation and concluded that speeding up the border reopening process is feasible.
“The Kenyan government is bleeding money with the border closed. This doesn’t mean trade between Somalia and Kenya has stopped—it just channels revenue away. Officially closing the border has significant fiscal losses,” he elaborated.
